


Family Resemblance

by Pyreite



Category: Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Twins, Drabble Collection, F/M, Family Drama, Family Secrets, What-If
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-14
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2018-04-26 07:58:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 17,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4996849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pyreite/pseuds/Pyreite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>[DA:I]Everyone thinks Ellana Lavellan resembles a grouchy ex-elven slave from Tevinter.</p><p>It all starts with Varric and ends with a Dalish Keeper telling a big fat white lie.</p><p>- A 'What If' crackfic based on the player's ability to customise their Inquisitor - .</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. It all started with Varric

It all started when she first met Varric.

 

The way he stared made Ellana uncomfortable. She was darker than most Fereldan-born elves, with skin the hue of newly turned earth. Her silver-white hair, worn short and shaggy, was a little unusual too. Her eyes, the verdant of new spring leaves had turned more than one head since she'd been taken prisoner in Haven. Her elven face, adorned with the white vallaslin of Dirthamen, suggested that she harboured secrets too.

 

Varric's next question was even more confusing.

 

“Are you from Tevinter?”

 

“No”, said a puzzled Ellana. “I was born and bred in Fereldan”.

 

Varric's frowning face suggested that he wasn't convinced she was telling the truth.

 

The way he scrutinised her vallaslin wasn't reassuring either.

 

“Your tattoos aren't made from lyrium?”

 

Ellana blinked, brows arching comically. She gaped at the nosy dwarf. First he'd assumed she was from Tevinter. Now he thought her vallaslin was made from _actual_ lyrium. Ellana thought he might be a little too touched-in-the-head.

 

“I believe that would be very painful”, replied Ellana. “And potentially explosive”.

 

“Oh it's painful all right”, agreed Varric. “But not so explosive if you know the right spells to bind the lyrium to living flesh without killing the recipient”. He paused when Ellana blanched. The way she gaped at him revealed her inner thoughts. She thought he was downright crazy.

 

“I'll just do us both a favour and go stand over there by Chuckles”, laughed Varric. He smiled at her before departing. Ellana watched him leave with wide eyes. He was a little too strange for her liking. The way he hurried over to Solas suggested that he was running away from her.

 

Fast.

 

“Don't worry”, said Cassandra. “Varric has that impression on everyone when he first meets them”.

 

“So he is insane”, stated Ellana. “And possibly terrified of Dalish elves”.

 

“Unfortunately, that is likely untrue on both counts”, sighed Cassandra. “Varric is perfectly sane, and a compulsive liar. I wouldn't trust anything he says if I were you. He spins bullshit into the most elaborate tales. Maker, sometimes I think he was put on this earth just to vex me”.


	2. It continued with Cullen

It continued when she met Cullen too.

 

The templar, a former resident of Kirkwall, gaped owlishly. Ellana twiddled her thumbs. Moments passed in an awkward silence. Ellana heard Cassandra clear her throat with a husky cough. The harsh sound jolted Cullen back to reality.

 

He was blushing furiously, pale cheeks tinged rosy red.

 

“My apologies”, he told Ellana. “But you're very pretty-Oh! I m-mean y-you r-remind me of someone I know!”

 

Cullen winced when Cassandra huffed.

 

“Makers breath! She's a prisoner not a harlot soliciting on the street! Get a hold of yourself, Cullen! You can see the rope! Her hands are tied!”

 

“She has a point”, said the dalish elf. Ellana raised her hands to show they were bound by a thick coil of rope. “This would ordinarily, tell most people that I was a prisoner and not an ally”. Ellana smirked when Cullen chuckled. He found her cheekiness amusing.

 

“Or that you like being tied up”, suggested Cullen. “Or tied down”.

 

Ellana shrugged nonchalantly. His comment was neither distressing nor untrue. “Depends on the company”, teased Ellana. She was enjoying herself. Cullen's wide-eyed stare earned him a playful wink.

 

“And before you ask”, said Ellana. “I'm not from Tevinter and my vallaslin isn't made from lyrium”. She grinned when he frowned. He was confused. “I've met Varric”, explained Ellana.

 

“Oh”, remarked Cullen. “That makes sense”.

 

“Maker's balls!” cursed Cassandra.

 

Ellana winced when a gauntleted hand struck her between the shoulder-blades. The blow made her stumble. “ _Fenedhis_!” she cursed, heels dragging as her knees knocked. An angry glare at Cassandra incited a startled gasp. Ellana looked at Cullen.

 

He had taken two steps back.

 

He was staring at her as if she might burst into flame.

 

“I am a mage”, stated Ellana. “But I'm not stupid enough to cast spells around a templar”.

 

“Former templar”, corrected Cullen. “I'm retired”.

 

Ellana frowned. “So why the sudden wariness then?”

 

Cullen grimaced. “This might sound odd”, he told her. “But can you pass your hand through solid objects like my breastplate for example”. Cullen rapped his knuckles upon his armoured chest. “It's solid steel”.

 

“Why would I want to do that?” asked Ellana.

 

“To crush my heart”, declared Cullen.

 

“To crush your heart”, repeated Ellana. She glanced over her shoulder. She smiled sunnily at Cassandra. “The cute ones are always crazy”. Ellana bared her teeth in a nervous grin.

 

“Please get me out of here”.

 

Cassandra gestured to the cobblestone path. “If you would”, she urged. Ellana was more than happy to oblige. She avoided looking at Cullen as she hurried past. Cassandra was hot on her heels.

 

“Cullen”, said Cassandra. “Do stop fraternising with our prisoners. It's disgraceful”.

 

Cullen flushed. “But I was being serious!”

 

Ellana pouted as she was herded down the road. “Cute, sexy, and crazier than a chantry full of nugs. Damn. He and I could have been such good friends”.

 

Cassandra snorted. “I thought you dalish didn't like humans”.

 

“We don't”, confirmed Ellana. “But I'm a woman not blind”. She smiled coyly. “I like a man in armour. I also like a man with a fabulous arse. And that man looks wonderful in leather, especially from behind”.

 

Cassandra prodded Ellana hard in the shoulder. “Stop daydreaming about Cullen and get moving!”

 

Ellana was already scheming. “So his name is Cullen. Hmm”.

 


	3. It got worse with Leliana

It only got worse when she met Leliana too.

 

The spymaster of the Inquisition took one look at Ellana and asked a rather unusual question.

 

“Does your vallaslin glow when you cast spells?”

 

Ellana stared at her. No one outside of her clan was supposed to know that much about her unusual magical nature. She frowned when Leliana smiled a little too innocently. She was just as knowledgeable as Dirthamen. The elvhen god of secrets to whom Ellana had pledged herself.

 

“No”.

 

“I know you're lying”, warned Leliana.

 

Ellana groaned. “You sent a courier to my clan”.

 

“I did”, affirmed Leliana. “When I informed Keeper Deshanna Istimaethoriel, by letter, that you were alive and well. She was overjoyed and more than a little forthcoming about your magical talents, training, and family”.

 

The purposely open-ended statement left Ellana reeling.

 

Typical bloody Deshanna.

 

The woman was a fussy mother-hen.

 

“Fenedhis!” cursed Ellana. “What _else_ did she tell you?”

 

Leliana produced a letter, written in neat elven script. “A number of things”, she said vaguely.

 

Ellana snatched the letter out of Leliana's hand when it was offered. She hastily turned it over to inspect the spidery handwriting. The parchment was yellowed with age and wet in spots from rain, but the message was still legible. Ellana gasped when she read what Deshanna had divulged. The Lavellan Clan Keeper had a bigger mouth than most gossips.

 

Ellana shakily crushed the letter into a ball. She accepted the candle Leliana held out for her too. The letter was held over the flaming wick. It was alight in a heartbeat. Ellana watched the paper shrivel, blacken, and burn to ash.

 

“You can't tell, Varric!” hissed Ellana. “Or this Hawke woman he keeps blathering about!”

 

Leliana smiled sadly. “I think they'll figure it out for themselves. If they haven't already”.

 

“ _Please_!” implored Ellana.

 

Leliana gently gripped her shoulder. “Varric has already written to Hawke about you”. She shrugged nonchalantly. “She's on her way here from Kirkwall. Once she meets you and sees you for herself. Well, I think she'll want to do the inevitable and have you meet her lover”.

 

Ellana had heard about this Fenris in whispers and the occasional hushed conversation with Cullen.

 

He was an elf, just like her, but without a family of his own.

 

Save for Hawke.

 

“But this is madness!” cried Ellana. “Just because I bear a passing resemblance to him doesn't mean we're family!”

 

“Hawke will be in Haven in three days”, Leliana warned her. “Prepare yourself, Ellana”.


	4. She avoided Varric....

Ellana avoided Varric for three days.

 

She had plenty of other matters that required her attention. The refugees in the Hinterlands needed a healer. A group of scouts, taken prisoner by hostile Avvar, needed rescuing in the Fallow Mire. The Inquisition's forces at Haven needed more iron ore and wood to requisition the manufacture of better weapons. Ellana was swamped with enough work to keep her busy for weeks.

 

Everything was going swimmingly until Hawke arrived in Haven.

 

The Champion of Kirkwall would not be denied.

 

She had come a long way to meet this reclusive Fenris-look-alike.

 

Ellana ignored the shouting coming from the Chantry. She was in her elven robes, with staff in hand. Bull, Cole, and Cassandra were armed and armoured too. Everyone was ready to leave Haven. They had scouts to rescue in the Fallow Mire. The trip would take two weeks.

 

“Let's move out”, commanded Ellana.

 

Cassandra hesitated. The shouting was getting louder. “I do not think that running away from Hawke is the best solution”.

 

“ _We have a mission_ ”, growled Ellana. She glared at Cassandra. “The scouts won't rescue themselves!” A warning glance around the group revealed that Bull and Cole felt the same as Cassandra. They did not want to shuffle out of Haven like a bunch of thieves.

 

“Cass has a point, Boss”, said the Iron Bull. He shrugged his massive shoulders. The hefty great-sword harnessed to his back flashed silver in the sun. Ellana was grateful that he was an ally and not an enemy. She didn't relish the idea of being spitted on that blade if he ever decided to play the turncoat.

 

“I don't like running from a fight”.

 

Ellana rolled her eyes. “For the second time! We're not running away! We're going on a mission to the Fallow Mire!” Ellana ground her teeth when Cole protested too.

 

“But you are running away”, he told her. His blue eyes were soft and sad. “You're worried that Hawke will want something from you that you can't give”. He looked towards the Chantry. Josephine was having an awful time distracting the very frustrated Champion of Kirkwall.

 

“So many expectations from so many people”, said Cole. “You're afraid you'll disappoint them, because they're asking for so much when you're just one person”. He nodded solemnly. He understood Ellana's reluctance to meet Hawke in his own strange little way. “You're afraid of failing them all”, declared Cole.

 

“ _E_ _specially_ Hawke, when she's come so far to see you”.

 

Ellana groaned and buried her face in her hands.

“Thank you for stating the obvious, Cole”, reproved Cassandra.

 

The boy cringed. “I didn't mean to make her upset!”

 

Bull clucked his tongue. “Don't worry about the Boss. She's stronger than she looks!”, he reassured him. “Come on! You can bunk down with me and the Chargers tonight. We'll share a few pints. Talk about the ladies, and get a good night's rest before heading out first thing tomorrow morning”.

 

“But I don't need to eat or drink!” protested Cole.

 

“Then you can watch me eat and drink!”

 

Cassandra watched Bull usher Cole away.

 

“I could not have put it any better”, she said quietly. She glanced at Ellana. The dalish elf was still frustratingly withdrawn. Her reluctance to face Hawke was terribly obvious.

 

“Maker's breath! Talk to the woman before she shouts down the chantry!” demanded Cassandra. “I can hear her voice echoing off the walls from here!”

 

“I don't want too”, grumbled Ellana. “I just want to focus on the mission!”

 

Cassandra winced when a boisterous voice cried.

 

“ _Where is that bloody elf?_ ”

 

“Well you won't be going anywhere now”, said Cassandra. “She's spotted us”.

 

“Fenedhis!” cursed Ellana.

 

So much for sneaking out of Haven discreetly.


	5. Ellana was convinced....

Ellana was convinced that meeting Hawke would be horrible.

 

“Is that her?”

 

“Yes, Hawke”, confirmed Varric. “That's the elf I wrote to you about”.

 

Ellana tensed when she heard the Champion's hushed discourse with Varric. The dull thud of their boots on the Chantry's stone steps, told her that they had finally outmanoeuvred Josephine. Ellana's stomach churned with nervousness. She didn't want to meet Hawke any more than she'd wanted to be Cassandra's prisoner. Her life, it seemed, was about to become even more complicated.

 

“You're still here”, said Ellana. “I thought you'd up and abandon me like Bull and Cole”.

 

Cassandra watched Hawke approach with Varric on her arm.

 

“I would not abandon a friend in their time of need”.

 

Ellana rolled her eyes. “So we're friends now” she repeated. “That's news to me considering you slapped me in shackles when we first met. I wouldn't call that being friendly exactly”. Ellana snorted when Cassandra growled.

 

“That was a long time ago!”

 

“No it wasn't”, corrected Ellana. “As I recall, quite clearly. It was actually about two months ago today. I thought you were a heartless bitch too. If that makes you feel any less guilty”.

 

Cassandra stomped her foot. “That is it! _I have had enough_!” She strode away, her head held high. “If you want to face Hawke on your own! You will be on your own!”

 

Ellana heard the seeker storm away, her armour rattling with every angry step she took. She also heard the playful laugh and the polite exchange of names.

 

“Cassandra”.

 

“Hawke”.

 

“ _Varric_ ”, spat Cassandra. “We will have words. You and I”.

 

“Seeker”, Varric replied sunnily. “Sure we will, but maybe later. Hawke needs to see the our elven friend”.

 

Few things could dampen his good spirits.

 

Ellana heard several choice Nevarran oaths when Cassandra stormed into the Chantry. She flinched when the massive oak doors slammed shut. She heard the dull thunk of a plank of wood shunted into place behind them. The entrance was barred. There would be no escape that way.

 

Ellana sighed morosely.

 

“So”, she declared. “You've finally found me”.

 

“We have”, agreed Hawke. “After you sent us on a wild goose-chase around Haven”.

 

“Sorry about that”, apologised Ellana. “I just really didn't want to meet you”.

 

“So I gathered”, laughed Hawke. She tiptoed past Varric.

 

Ellana heard her, despite the lightness of her step. She wasn't an elf, but she moved just as gracefully. Ellana steeled her nerves. She took a deep fortifying breath. If Varric and Cullen had found her appearance unnerving, then Hawke would too.

 

“Go on”, urged Ellana. “Take your turn gawking at me”.

 

Ellana braced herself when Hawke's shadow passed her by. She heard the startled gasp and felt the inevitable weight of the woman's gaze. Ellana looked up into a fair shemlen face. She grimaced when she saw Hawke's wide eyes. The way the woman stared made her very uncomfortable.

 

“ _Maker_ ' _s breath_!” gasped Hawke. “I thought you were mad when I read your letter, Varric! But you're right! She does look like Fenris! She has the same hair, eyes, and skin colour, even if the tattoos are different!”

 

Ellana frowned. “I doubt your Fenris has breasts, a woman's hips, and vallaslin tattooed on his face”. She usually got snarky when she was nervous. “So he couldn't look exactly like me”. Ellana shook her head.

 

“You're in denial, Hawke”.

 

Ellana was confused when Varric chuckled.

 

“Fenris is snarky like that when he's nervous too!” tittered Hawke.

 

Ellana blanched when the Champion's eyes misted over.

 

“ _Fenedhis lasa_! Don't you dare start crying on me!”

 

Hawke laughed as she wiped her face. “She even swears like him too! Oh, Varric! This is marvellous! I'm so glad I came!”

 

Varric nodded. “I told you it would be worth it”.

 

Ellana scowled. “ _Will you two stop talking about me like I'm not here_!”

 

“I'm sorry”, apologised Hawke. “I'm just a little overwhelmed right now”.

 

A few sniffles made Ellana groan.

 

“For the last time!”, she grumbled. “I am not a relative of your friend!”

 

Varric's eyes glinted. “That's not what Leliana told me”.


	6. Varric had her by the balls...

Ellana pouted. Varric had her by the balls. The sneaky little bastard. She should have known that Leliana would have shared that little morsel of information without telling her. The Spymaster had a soft spot for sappy romances.

 

Hawke's relationship with Fenris was just that.

 

Sappy.

 

A shemlen mage falling in love with an elven Tevinter slave.

 

Ellana wasn't sure if she wanted to vomit or cry. She sighed when a cup of hot tea was pressed into her waiting hands. She smelt mint stirred with a generous dollop of honey. Varric always did make the very best tea. Ellana sipped the steaming cup.

 

It did taste very good, though it was a pity she couldn't really enjoy it.

 

Her present company was less than ideal.

 

“So”, said Hawke. “Your father is from Tevinter”.

 

Ellana's mouth turned down unhappily. She glared at Varric. The smug bastard had the cheek to smile. She hated him, except she really didn't. She still considered Varric a friend even if she wanted to geld him with a rusty knife.

 

“Yes, he is”, confirmed Ellana. She took another sip of her tea. This discussion about her family felt more like an interrogation. She eyed Hawke warily.

 

“And is he alive or dead?” asked Hawke.

 

Ellana grimaced. She shot Varric a dark look when the dwarf arched his brows. He was trying to encourage her to tell the truth. Her clan's Keeper had been very forthcoming in the letter she'd sent to Leliana. Ellana gritted her teeth when Varric goaded her.

 

“Come on, Broody. Spill the beans. I read all about it that little letter from home. Leliana was kind enough to show me the really juicy bits. So it's a complete waste of your time to start lying now”.

 

Ellana scowled. “You'll be dead if you keep pissing me off you little shit!”

 

Varric clucked his tongue disapprovingly. “There's no need to swear, Ellana. We're all friends here”.

 

Hawke nodded. “Actually I think we might be family”.

 

Ellana groaned. “For the last time! I'm not related to your lover! Fenedhis lasa, Hawke! Would you please just leave me alone!”

 

Hawke gave her chin a thoughtful tap with a gauntleted finger. She seemed to be mulling it over in her shaggy Fereldan head. Ellana hoped she would see reason. That hope deflated when Hawke wrinkled her nose. The swift shake of her head made Ellana bury her face in her hands.

 

“Nope. I can't do that”.

 

Ellana tossed a buttered scone at Varric. She scowled when he caught it nimbly. He was a good thief and an even better liar. Using his famed crossbow, Bianca, had given him excellent hand-to-eye coordination. Ellana glared when Varric bit into that scone with relish.

 

“I hate you, Varric”.

 

Varric grinned. “No you don't”.

 

Ellana's mouth turned down unhappily. “No I don't”, she repeated. He was right. She didn't hate him, not really. Varric was still a very good friend.

 

“You're still a bastard”, cursed Ellana.

 

Varric nodded. “I know, but you still love me just like Hawke”.

 

“I suppose so”, Ellana admitted grudgingly.

 

He did have a point.

 

He was annoyingly loveable.

 

“It's the chest-hair”, said Hawke.

 

Ellana snorted. “You're such a pervert”.

 

Hawke fidgeted in her seat. “So”, she said gently. “Is your father dead or alive?”

 

“Broody”, urged Varric. “Go on. Tell the truth. I know you want too”.

 

Ellana blew the dwarf a wet raspberry. She turned to Hawke, eyes rolling. The woman was bouncing on her stool hard enough to break it. She was terribly excited about this whole mess. Ellana decided to put Hawke's mind at ease.

 

“Yes, my father is still alive”.

 

Hawke's ecstatic screech cracked the Chantry's many stained-glass windows.

 

“ _YES_! I knew it! Fenris will be so happy!”

 


	7. Ellana managed to evade Hawke...

Ellana managed to evade Hawke with the excuse of resuming her duties. She was glad when the Champion of Kirkwall agreed wholeheartedly. Hawke, apparently, had duties of her own that needed doing too. Ellana was relieved to see her sitting on the back of a horse, laden with saddlebags full of supplies. Her smile was tight when Hawke waved goodbye, reins in hand, and sent her mount in a steady gallop, along the snow-covered road.

 

She was leaving Haven.

 

“Finally”, said Ellana, when Hawke was out of sight. “She's gone”.

 

“She scared you”, declared Cole. “With her questions, and curiosity”.

 

The Spirit of Compassion had kept her company during Hawke's farewell. Ellana was glad for his presence, although she was still getting used to his untimely sense of intuition. The way he blurted out sensitive information, about her personal feelings was discomforting. Ellana was a private person. Cole, unfortunately, was not.

 

“She did”, admitted Ellana. “It's not everyday I get interrogated about my family”.

 

“You don't like your father very much”, stated Cole. “He's too much of a traditionalist. All twisted up inside with proper manners and ways of speaking. He thinks women shouldn't be warriors, especially mages. He wanted you to stay in the Free Marches, where you would be safe from the world's corrupting influences”.

 

Ellana winced when Varric overheard. The dwarf's mouth fell open. His head turned, and he was soon regarding her with wide-eyed incredulity. Ellana glared at Cole as she turned on her heel. She tried to escape before Varric could corner her.

 

Ellana had had _enough_ of his pointed questions.

 

“I'm sorry!” cried Cole, when she strode away. “I didn't mean too say those things out loud! Oh, Ellana! Come back! _Ellana_!”

 

Ellana stuck her nose in the air. She ignored Cole's entreaties. She did not want to talk about her Vintish elven father who thought that women were pretty baubles. He was too much the traditionalist. A man from Tevinter, trained to believe from the moment he could walk, that pretty things should be protected.

 

“ _Broody_!” bellowed Varric. “ _Wait_!”

 

Ellana broke into a run when the dwarf tried to catch her hand. Her legs were longer. Her stride wider than his own. Ellana ignored him when he dashed after her too. She easily outdistanced him in a few leg-lengths.

 

“Shit!” grumbled Varric. He scowled when Cassandra laughed. “This isn't funny, Seeker!” They both watched Ellana disappear into the crowd milling outside the gates of Haven. The Templar recruits were quick to turn aside sword and shield, when Ellana darted between them.

 

“Damn she's quick!” wheezed Varric.

 

Cassandra smirked. “I disagree. I think this is hilarious”.

 

“ _Seeker_!”

 

Cassandra's reply was cutting like a blade. “I told you to leave it alone, Varric. I told you not to bother her with this family business. Ellana is a sensitive soul. If she did not want to talk about her father than she had valid reasons. You simply did not care what those reasons were”.

 

“You knew!” accused Varric.

 

Cassandra rolled her eyes. “Of course I knew! Idiot! I read that message too, Varric! I have also had the privilege of meeting her father in person”.

 

Varric gaped at her. “You what?”

 

Cassandra nodded to Cole. The Spirit of Compassion was winding his way through the crowd of Templars too. He was searching for Ellana. Cassandra sighed when he climbed the stone stairs leading back inside the gates of Haven. Ellana had gone into the village, likely to find a dark secluded corner to hide in for a few hours.

 

“You are not deaf, Varric”, reproved Cassandra.

 

“But you met him?”

 

“I did”, said Cassandra. “I will tell you only this. Ellana's father, Lerel, is nothing like her at all”.

 

“So his name is Lerel”, mused Varric.

 

Cassandra gave him a disgusted look. “You are a bottom-feeder, Varric. Get out of my way. I must fix the mess you have made, before Ellana bolts from Haven”.

 

Varric watched her storm through the Templar ranks. He grimaced when a shadow loomed over him. He looked up into the disapproving face of the Iron Bull. The grey-skinned qunari-giant was shaking his horned head. Varric eyed him warily.

 

“What is it, Tiny?”

 

“You're an ass”, growled Bull. “Going behind Ellana's back like that was dishonourable”.

 

“Says the Ben-Hassrath spy”, retorted Varric.

 

Bull glowered. “I told Ellana what I was first-off. I didn't lie or cheat her. You did, Varric. She trusted you. Now she doesn't. Nice work”.

 

Varric had the decency to look ashamed. “Shit”.

 

“So you do have a conscience underneath all that chest-hair”.

 

Varric reddened. “Don't go spreading it around, Tiny. People might actually start thinking that I'm a decent person. It'll ruin my reputation as a bad-ass”.

“Right”, growled Bull. “Now go find her and apologize”.

 

“Maybe later”, said Varric. “When she's feeling a little less murderous. I'd rather not have my head encased in a block of ice. Or my chest-hair singed off by a ball of fire. Ellana's crazy when she's angry”.

 

Bull chuckled. “Fair point. It would be a good idea to let her cool off for a few hours”.

 

“My point exactly”, seconded Varric.

 


	8. Cullen felt ridiculous...

Cullen felt ridiculous as he stood knee-deep in a snowdrift outside the Chantry. It was freezing despite the thick layer of fur across his shoulders. He was warm even if Haven was cold at night. Being in their stronghold in the middle of winter hadn't been Cassandra's best idea. Cullen looked up the snow-covered bank to the pine tree beside the Chantry.

“Ellana!” called Cullen. “Would you please come down!”

“ _Nae_!”

Cullen scowled. He was dwarfed by the giant conifer. It was taller than the Chantry roof, and grew larger the longer he glared into its leafy boughs. He couldn't see Ellana perched like a songbird amidst the branches, but he knew she was there. How the elf could sit up there without freezing her tits off mystified him.

“She doesn't want to come down”, said Cole. “Because she's still upset with Varric and I”.

He stepped out of the shadows, expression contrite. Cullen wasn't particularly fond of him, but the templar tolerated his presence for Ellana. Cole was grateful for the small concession. He was terribly worried about his elven friend. She hadn't eaten or drunk a thing since mid-morning.

Cullen's lip curled. He wanted to scold the spirit for being a nuisance, but he held his tongue. Cole had come to him for help after Ellana had disappeared. Cullen had found her hiding place after she'd pelted Varric with a week's worth of pine-cones. The dwarf was currently sitting in the tavern, picking pinenuts out of his hair.

“I guessed as much”, snorted Cullen.

“I was only trying to help”, said Cole.

Cullen wanted to stay mad at the boy. He really did, but the downturn of Cole's mouth made him uncomfortable. He was a spirit, but the way he emulated emotion made him seem human. Cullen reined in his temper. He glanced to the giant of a man beside Cole.

“I know”, replied Cullen. “But blurting a person's secrets to the world at large generally causes offence, Cole. It does not inspire feelings of friendship and gratitude. Ellana is a private person. It was wrong of you to be so open about her personal life, even if you did mean well by doing it”.

Cole pouted.

The Iron Bull clapped the skinny spirit on the shoulder. Cole stumbled. Bull grinned. He had been heavy-handed on purpose. Bull shot Cullen a pointed look with his lone dark eye.

“Leave the kid alone. He's already feeling bad about it”, he told Cullen. “Rubbing salt into the wound isn't going to get your girlfriend out of her tree”. Bull chuckled when Cullen sputtered. The pleasing flush in his pale cheeks had nothing to do with the cold.

“ _Ellana is not my girlfriend_!”

“But you'd like her to be”, said Cole. “You think she's beautiful”.

Cullen glared at the helpful spirit. He jabbed a gauntleted finger at him. His words were stern and laced with barely restrained fury. He was a private person too. Cole had just crossed the line.

“Keep your nose out of my thoughts!”

“But I was only trying to help!” whined Cole.

“ _I don't need your help_!” bellowed Cullen.

An awkward silence descended.

Cole sniffled.

Cullen grimaced.

The Iron Bull laughed.

“You humans take things way too seriously”.

Bull cracked his knuckles and rolled his muscular shoulders. He stepped past Cullen and moved towards Ellana's pine tree. His great, trunk-like legs, ploughed through the snow as if it were grass. Bull ignored Cullen's worried question when he bowed at the waist. He eyed the gnarled trunk, nodded, and backed up several steps.

“Bull! What are you doing?”

“Oh no!” cried Cole. “He'll break Ellana's tree!”

The Iron Bull snorted like a bovine, horns lowered, and target in sight.

“ _Bull_!” roared Cullen.

The Commander of Haven's army gaped when the Iron Bull darted forward. He watched the grey-skinned giant kick up snow as he pelted towards the trunk of Ellana's pine tree. The impact shook the tree from root to bough. Cullen was impressed when the tree didn't break in half. The Iron Bull had an impressive set of horns.

“And here comes one moody little elf”, chuckled Bull.

Cullen frowned when the Qunari stood tall again and opened his arms. He heard the sound of cracking wood. A lump of snow fell from the canopy. Cullen jumped when he heard an inhuman screech. He gasped when a snow-splattered Ellana tumbled into Bull's waiting embrace.

“ _You horn-headed_ , _Bastard_!”

Bull laughed when Ellana slapped his bare chest.

“That tickles!”

“ _You almost murdered my tree_!”

Cullen gulped when Bull threw him in the deep end.

“The Commander was worried about you”.

Ellana's anger drained away like water through sand. She stared at Cullen, her green eyes wide and incredulous. She resembled a drowned squirrel. Her hair, face, and clothes were flecked with white icicles. She blushed to the tips of her pointed elven ears.

“You were worried about me?”

Cullen nodded when the Iron Bull winked.

“He thought you would catch a chill”, said Cole.

Ellana sniffed. “I suppose I was more than a little foolish for sitting outdoors on a winter's day”.

Bull chuckled. “I'm sure the Commander could think of a few things to help warm you up”.

Cullen reddened when Cole chirped his secrets like a baby-bird.

“He wants to kiss and cuddle you in front of a roaring fire. Preferably without any clothes on. I think its called being _naked_ , but I'm not sure. Spirits don't wear clothes. He also wonders how far down your vallaslin goes”.

Cullen bit his lip when Bull grinned.

“You kinky, bastard”.

Ellana blushed.

Cole smiled.

“It's all right”, he assured Cullen. “She wonders if you're a natural blond too”.

“ _Cole_!” screeched Ellana.

“But I'm helping!”

“ _Not another word_!”

Cole's shoulders drooped. “Fine”, he muttered. “Be that way then”.

Ellana jabbed a finger at the Chantry. She watched Cole trudge through the snow. The Spirit slouched sullenly. She felt a tad guilty when the Iron Bull growled in her ear. The grey-skinned Qunari giant was perceptive when he wasn't cracking bad jokes.

“I think you hurt his feelings”.

“I think so too”, said Cullen. “And I am a natural blonde”.

Bull glanced from his charge to the Commander of the Inquisition's standing army.

“ _What_?” blurted Ellana.

“I'm a natural blonde”, repeated Cullen. “I don't dye my hair like those Orlesian courtiers”.

Ellana's cheeks were pink.

“So the carpets match the curtains?” asked the Iron Bull. He paused when Ellana and Cullen gaped at him like startled rabbits. “Hey”, he told them. “You too perves were thinking the same thing. I just had the balls to say it out loud”.

Cullen rolled his eyes. “Will you please escort Ellana back inside!”

Bull shrugged his shoulders. “Sure, but honestly I think Varric's right”. He strode through the snow carrying Ellana towards the Chantry. “You're way too uptight, Cullen. You should get laid and work off the excess stress. Ellana might even volunteer to help you if you ask nicely”.

“ _Bull_!”

“What? You already think he looks good in leather. I bet he'd look even better naked. Come on, Ellana. The guy has a great ass”.

Cullen, red-faced, caught a glimpse of Ellana peering over Bull's shoulder.

He was relieved to see that she was flustered too.


	9. Ellana's mood soured...

“So, have you forgiven me yet?”

A good night's rest and a hearty breakfast had done wonders. Ellana's good mood soured when Varric cornered her by the tavern door. He'd made himself scarce during the morning meal, but now here he was. Ellana tried to edge past him. Varric stepped into her path, blocking her escape.

“Look, I know you're still mad at me. I also understand that you and your Dad have problems. I'm sorry for intruding on your privacy, but I had a good reason for being an ass. When I saw you for the first time, Ellana, I thought Andraste had answered my prayers. Oh, stop rolling your eyes!”

Ellana folded her arms across her chest. She hated it when people got sentimental on her. The believers flocking to Haven gawked at her in the street. Some even cried when she came within arms reach. It upset her that Varric thought she was the Maker's messenger.

“Don't you dare call me your Worship!”

Varric gaped at her. “Wait, what?”

“ _You heard me_!” growled Ellana.

Varric raised his hands in supplication.

“Whoa! Easy there, Broody! That's not what I meant!”

“ _Then what did you mean, Varric_!”

Ellana's raised voice was getting unwanted attention. Varric was quick to grab her hand. He held tight when she tried to pull free. He turned and marched through the Tavern's open door, dragging Ellana along with him. Varric winced when Ellana slapped his shoulders and yanked on his ponytail.

“Fenedhis! _Let go of me_!”

Varric endured the assault upon his person. Ellana had to understand how important she was. He led her away from the tavern, past an amused Seggrit, and down the flight of snow-covered steps. Varric made it to the doors leading to the Templar training yards before someone stopped him.

“Release Ellana at once!”

Varric rolled his eyes. He sighed miserably. It had to be the only other pointy-eared apostate in Haven. He was screwed. Solas had a thing about elves being mistreated.

He followed Varric like a wolf with a bone to gnaw on.

“Andraste's ass! Chuckles! Turn around and go away! Ellana and I have something important to discuss! It's private so I would appreciate it if you took your big elven nose and ears somewhere else!”

Ellana had stopped hitting Varric. She stood behind him, eyes wide, when Solas reddened. She had never seen him blush before. He seemed at a loss for words too until he glanced between her and the dwarf. Ellana didn't like the glint in his eye.

“Varric”, asked Solas. “Is this about your friend, Fenris?”

“None of your business”.

“Ah, so it is about Fenris”.

“Chuckles!” warned Varric. “ _Go away_!”

Solas smiled at Ellana. “Forgive me, I was mistaken as to your intentions regarding our mutual friend. I apologise, Varric. I will take my leave. Good morning, Ellana. I hope you and Varric have a most illuminating conversation”.

Ellana gaped when Solas turned on his heel. She couldn't believe it. Her fellow elf was going to leave her alone with Varric. She called out to him as he walked away. Solas was almost out of earshot as he strode past Haven's resident merchant.

“Hey! You can't just leave me with him! Come back! Solas! _Rescue me_!”

The bastard had the cheek to laugh.

“You're in good hands, my friend!”

Ellana grumbled when Solas disappeared behind the tavern. “That traitor! _Oh_! See if I take him on another mission outside Haven! He can stay behind next time!”

Varric laughed. “You always leave him behind”.

“Oh shut up, Varric”.

“Well you do”.

“I thought you wanted to talk about this Fenris friend of yours”.

Varric grinned. “Oh, so you want to know about him then?”

“Not really”, said Ellana. “Don't look at me like that! I'm still mad at you for reading that letter! Leliana had no right telling you what she did! And I'm still not convinced that I'm related to this Fenris you keep blabbering about”.

“I think you'll change your mind”, Varric told her. “Once you learn what he's been through”.

Ellana frowned. “Is it horrible?”

Varric sighed. “Yeah it is”.


	10. His name is Leto

“ _That monster_!” snarled Ellana. “How could he do such a thing! Lyrium is dangerous in ore and liquid form! It may strengthen a mage's link to the Fade, but it can kill those without the constitution to imbibe it! I cannot believe a magister would be so depraved!”

Varric winced when Ellana's voice escalated.

She and Fenris had another thing in common besides their looks.

They got loud when they were angry.

“ _This Danarius had better be dead_!” roared Ellana. “ _Fenedhis_! _Even if he is I'll dig him up and kill him again_! _Th_ _at_ _conniving snake_! _What he did was worse than cruel_!”

Varric sat up straight in his chair. He gaped at the irate elf. Her vallaslin glowed like liquid-silver against the darkness of her skin. She was furious. Only one other elf in Thedas lit up like that when he was mad.

“Maker's balls! _I knew it_!”

“You knew what?” demanded Ellana.

Varric jabbed a finger at her. “Your vallaslin! Fenris's lyrium markings shine like that too!”

Ellana's ire cooled in a heartbeat. She bit her lip when Varric scowled. He was watching her face, searching for the subtle change in her expression. Ellana grimaced when he grumbled. He was tired of her denying the obvious.

“Don't you dare tell me it's a coincidence, Broody”.

“All right”, sighed Ellana. “It's not”.

Varric frowned. “What do you mean?”

“A coincidence”, said Ellana. “That my father's from Tevinter. That my vallaslin glows when I want to kick someone or cast a spell. That I bear a resemblance to this Fenris friend of yours. It's not a coincidence, Varric”.

The dwarf stared at her. “You're shitting me! You're actually admitting there's truth to what I've been saying since I met you?”

Ellana rolled her eyes. “You sound surprised”.

Varric gestured to her. “You're the one in denial!”

“To be fair. I've never actually met this Fenris of yours”.

“Wait. Did your father ever mention that he left a family behind in Tevinter?”

Ellana shook her head. “Not in so many words, Varric. You have to understand. My father is a very private person just like me. He told me some things about his life before he came to Fereldan. The magisters and the magic, but very little about anything else”.

“You see”, explained Ellana. “My father thought there were Tevinter spies everywhere. A mage child is invaluable in the Magisterium. My father always feared they'd find me. It's why I grew up among the Dalish and not in an Alienage”.

Varric suddenly understood with terrible clarity.

“He was protecting you”.

Ellana nodded. “He did the best he could for me, Varric. I can't complain. I grew up free without a slave collar around my neck. I've known hardship, certainly, but nothing like my father knew. I've also been educated in the ways of magic without being inside the Circle of Magi”.

“It's better than the hand dealt to most mages”, admitted Varric.

“It is”, agreed Ellana.

“So. What are you going to do now?”

Ellana saw the hopeful look on his face. She sighed wearily. She didn't have her father's fear of the Magisterium, but she did have a healthy sense of caution. She had no intention of going to Tevinter. Fereldan was the only home she'd ever known.

“Close the Breach”.

“And after that?"

“Get on with my life”, reasoned Ellana. “What else am I supposed to do?”

“You could agree to meet Fenris!”

“Fenedhis lasa!” cursed Ellana. “ _I don't know him_ , _Varric_! How am I supposed to care about a complete stranger? All I have to go on is your word and Hawke's! You keep trying to convince me that this Fenris and I are related, but I haven't seen any evidence that we are!”

“What if I told you that Fenris isn't his real name?” retorted Varric. “It was a nickname given to him by that bastard Danarius. It means ' _Little Wolf_ ' in Tevene. His real name is Leto. From what Cassandra told me, it's similar to your father's name”.

Ellana froze. Her green eyes widened. She stared at Varric. He had caught her hook, line, and sinker. Ellana shakily repeated Fenris's birth-name.

“L-Leto? A-are you s-sure?”

“Positive”.

“It can't be him!”, wailed Ellana. Her eyes were watery. “ _It can't be_!”

Varric shot to his feet when the tears flowed down her cheeks. He darted across the room in concern. He ushered Ellana onto the bed. She sank down shakily, the mattress shifting under her weight. Varric gently patted her knee.

“What is it, Broody?”

Ellana peered at him through tear-wet lashes. “I have a twin, Varric. A brother. He was identical to me. White hair, dark skin, and green eyes. My father told me that he died when I was born”.

“Maker's balls!”

Ellana sniffled. “His name was Leto”.

Varric was glad Harritt had given them leave to use the room beside the Smithy. It was cramped and filled with odds and ends, but private enough to keep out prying eyes. The refugees in Haven didn't need to see Andraste's Herald in tears. Varric opened his arms when Ellana sobbed. He felt terrible when she hiccuped in misery.

“Oh, Broody. I'm sorry”.

Ellana dove into his embrace, near throttling Varric in her desperation.

The dwarf laid his cheek upon the snowy crown of her head.

“Andraste's flaming knicker-weasels”, he swore. “Cullen is going to kill me for making you cry”.


	11. Damsel in Distress

"I can't believe you made her cry!"

Varric rolled his eyes. "Curly. I've already said I was sorry".

Cullen's nose wrinkled in disdain. He was hovering over a sleeping Ellana like an irritable mabari. The slightest twitch of her fingers and fluttering of her eyelids made him scowl. Varric was certain the man was ready to lop off his head. Cullen was protective when it came to the pretty little Dalish elf he'd had his eye on for weeks.

"It was still wrong of you!"

"Maker's balls", grumbled Varric. "You're really pushing the _concerned friend_ act to the limit".

Cullen's eyes narrowed. "I would tread carefully if I were you".

"Or what? You'll bend me over your knee and spank me?"

"Andraste's arse! _Of course not_!"

"You're blushing", said Varric.

"That is beside the point!" snapped Cullen. "And I am not blushing".

"That red face says otherwise".

Cullen flushed scarlet. He opened his mouth to argue when Ellana stirred. He waited with bated breath when her brows furrowed. She groaned, eyelids fluttering. He heard her distressed squeak and rushed across the room.

"A hero to the rescue", teased Varric. "I knew you liked her".

He smiled when Cullen sank into the seat beside Ellana's bed. He was as attentive now as he had been an hour ago. He had caused a spectacle when he'd carried her across Haven in his arms. Varric had heard the excited whispers. Commander Cullen, an esteemed former Templar, in love with the Herald of Andraste.

It would have been a romantic, if Ellana's prospective beau wasn't the honourable sort.

"You could kiss her, Curly".

Cullen glared at him. "I will not take advantage of a slumbering woman!"

Varric smiled when Ellana complained.

"Maker's breath! Why not?"

Cullen gaped when he saw that she was wide awake. A pair of glinting emerald eyes returned his scrutiny. He purpled when Ellana arched an ivory brow. He was flustered by her expectant look. A tentative glance at her lips made him gulp.

"That would be inappropriate".

"Do you like me or not?"

Cullen sputtered. "Of course I do!"

"Then kiss me!" demanded Ellana. "I'm a damsel in distress in need of comforting!"

Cullen would have if he hadn't heard Varric snorting. He looked across the room and saw the dwarf grinning from ear to ear. A waggle of his bushy eyebrows made Cullen scowl. Varric was trying not to laugh out loud at his disastrous courting of their Dalish rebel. Cullen's lip curled, his brows knitted.

He turned to Ellana with a determined glint in his eye.

Varric chuckled when he heard a girlish gasp. The sound of lips smacking in an impassioned kiss satisfied the romantic in him. He turned away, giving them time alone, though he didn't leave the hut. It was cold outside and Ellana had a roaring fire in the hearth. Varric was content to stay indoors, even if he could hear them moaning.

Hawke and Fenris had been worse on the road.

He moved towards the hearth and plucked a log from the stack of firewood. He cast it into the flames and watched the would blacken and burn. He ignored the clink of steel and the rustle of blankets. He was glad Cullen had finally found his spine. Varric was tired of seeing Ellana ogle him with her big green moon-eyes.

"I knew you had it in you, Curly".

Varric smirked when heard a gruff reply.

"Maker's breath. Shut up".

Varric was pleased when Ellana spoke to him.

"What's my brother like?"

He glanced over his shoulder. He was glad when he saw her in Cullen's arms. She'd coaxed him onto her bed. His breastplate and greaves were on the floor. His fur-cape was still around his shoulders. Ellana was in Cullen's lap and his long legs were tangled with her own.

"So, you're finally willing to believe me".

Ellana bit her lip.

"This isn't easy for me, Varric".

He sighed.

"I know, but it won't be any easier for Fenris. He thinks he only has one sister not two. He hates Varania and she's a mage. He distrusts magic, despite Hawke being a mage. I don't think he'll take kindly to you, either, with the magic and the glowing vallaslin".

"I thought you wanted me to meet him".

Varric nodded.

"I do. Fenris deserves to be happy. So do you. But you need to know what you're in for if you go through with this. Fenris isn't the friendliest person, especially towards strangers. In truth he's pricklier than a patch of bramble".

Ellana giggled.

"I'm being serious", said Varric.

"I know", replied Ellana. "It's just".

"Just what?" urged Cullen.

Ellana smiled, her green eyes twinkling.

"He sounds a lot like my father".

Varric stared. "Is his bite just as bad as his bark?"

"Varric!" growled Cullen. "Fenris is not that bad!"

"Yes he is".

Ellana laughed. "You haven't seen my father work himself into a rage".

"Does he swing around a giant sword?" asked Varric. "And shout curses in tevene?"

"He favours a double-headed battleaxe and he can swear in five languages".

"Andraste's ass. He's worse than Fenris".

"I know", confirmed Ellana. "He raised me. Remember? If I can handle my father, Varric. I'm sure I can handle Leto".

Varric gaped at her. "You know what? I think you'll be fine".


	12. Bribing Bull

A month had passed since Hawke had left Haven. Ellana was glad she'd finally rescued the scouts from the Fallowmire. She'd been delayed, thanks to Varric, and his so-called friend. Hawke had been an unwelcome distraction from her duty to the fledgling Inquisition. Ellana was relieved the woman was gone, maybe not for good, but at least for the meantime.

"You still don't like her very much", said Cole.

"Like who?" asked Varric as he shot a bolt from Bianca.

"Hawke".

The dwarf rolled his eyes as he skewered a Red Templar. "I can't believe you're still feeling sore about that".

"Maker's balls! _Not now_ , _Varric_!"

Ellana twirled her staff. She cast an ice spell and froze another Red Templar in his tracks. Cole finished him with a throwing dagger to the face. Ellana was breathing hard when the Rage Demon resurfaced again. Bull was the first to charge across the field.

"Shit!" snarled Varric. "He needs cover!"

Ellana twiddled her fingers. A sizzling arc of lightning struck the Rage Demon in the shoulder. It screamed. Bull laughed and hacked off a smouldering red arm. Ellana was smirking when Cole rushed to join him in a haze of grey smoke.

Varric snorted.

"Show off".

Ellana snickered and cast another spell. The demon was struck again and again by more bolts of lightning. It screeched. The Iron Bull swung his battleaxe. Cole darted inwards and away, time after time, with swift slashes of his twin daggers.

He was careful to avoid the wild swings of the demon's remaining arm.

"Now you're just being an ass!" hissed Varric.

"Jealous?" taunted Ellana.

"Not in the slightest".

He swiped his thumb across a red runestone. He smiled as he shot another bolt from Bianca. The bolt ignited as it cut through the air like a missile. Varric watched Ellana as tongues of blue-mist danced across the shaft and fletching. The head of the bolt, tapering to a small triangular point, struck the Rage Demon in the forehead.

Varric waggled his eyebrows when it roared.

"Show off", grumbled Ellana.

She was miffed when the demon was half-frozen by the effects of Bianca's frost rune. A fine coating of ice chilled its dome-like head black with cold. She slammed the butt of her staff on the ground and waved her hand in the air. A glyph appeared beneath the Rage Demon's trunk-like foot. The glowing concentric circles were broken by four overlapping shapes like leaves.

Varric recognised the pattern.

Hawke often used the same spell in combination with another.

" _Shit_!" swore Varric. " _Bull_! _Cole_! _Get out of the way_!"

Ellana was already going through the motions of casting. She grinned when Bull cursed in qunlat. The burly giant threw his battleaxe aside and barrelled towards Cole. The spirit grunted as he was tackled to the ground. He rolled clear of the blast-zone thanks to Bull.

"Perfect timing", said Ellana.

She smiled when the Rage Demon froze in place. The Glyph of Paralysis paralysed her foe just long enough for her second spell to take effect. Ellana raised her hand to the sky and called down a maelstrom of hellfire. Flaming meteorites rained down on the Rage Demon.

Its agonised screams made Varric shudder.

The Firestorm spell was one hell of a spectacle. A few moments later, the spell having run its course, left a smoking crater in the ground. The Rage Demon squealed in defiance as it died. The heat and ferocity of Ellana's spell smothered the fire at its heart. The demon extinguished in a flash of red flame.

Varric swore.

"Andraste's ass. That was overkill. You're lucky Solas isn't here. I bet he'd have a few things to say about your mistreatment of spirits. You should know better with being an elf, a mage, and the First to your clan's Keeper".

Ellana glared at him.

She hated having her spellcasting technique criticised.

"It's dead, Varric".

"You would be too if you'd been crushed by magical flaming rocks falling from the sky".

Ellana snorted.

"The Firestorm spell summons a meteorite shower. And those flaming rocks aren't small. It takes concentration and effort to make them as big as a dragonling. It also takes a focused mind to make sure they rain down in one place and not everywhere at once. I know what I'm doing".

Varric gaped at her. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Bull and Cole were in the firing line! They almost got fried by your spell because you were showing off! I enjoy a little friendly competition from time to time, but what you did was just plain reckless!"

He glared at her, eyes narrowing.

He was ready for a fight if she dared to argue with him.

Varric was surprised when Ellana capitulated.

"Fine", she huffed. "You're right. I got carried away. I'm sorry. I won't do it again and I'll be more careful from now on".

"Wait. What? You're giving up that easily?"

Ellana shrugged her shoulders. "You're forgetting something".

"And what am I forgetting?" asked Varric.

She glanced across the meadow and nodded at their scowling friend. The Iron Bull's lone grey eye was focused on Ellana. She saw him snort like an angry bovine as he helped Cole to his feet. Varric's husky chuckle wasn't as comforting as it should have been. Ellana sighed and waited to meet her doom.

"You're screwed".

"Not necessarily", said Ellana. She grimaced. "There is one way Bull will forgive me. You won't like it though. Neither will Cole".

Varric didn't like the way she sighed. It was resigned as she seemed to accept that only one thing would appease the Iron Bull. He had a perturbing fascination with beasts of the giant scaly nature. Varric hoped he was wrong. He licked his lips and asked that dreaded question.

"You're not seriously considering hunting a dragon. Right?"

Ellana nodded. "I am".

" _Broody_!"

"He'll forgive me!"

" _It's suicidal_!" growled Varric.

"Oh, come on", scoffed Ellana. "A dragon is easy pickings".

"Oh now there's that fatalistic optimism. Andraste's ass. You remind me of Hawke. She had brass balls too. You think a dragon is easy pickings eh?"

Ellana bit her lip at the deadpan serious look on his face.

"Fine. Not easy pickings. It does breath fire and can fly. It's also as large as a mountain and will most likely trample us underfoot. We will be in for a bit of a tough battle if we do hunt one down".

The Iron Bull came charging across the meadow. He was scowling until he came within earshot. Cole was smacking his muscular iron-grey forearm. Bull had unwittingly dragged him along like a ragdoll in his quest to humble Ellana. He paused, burly arm loosening, as he let Cole down.

"Did someone say something about hunting dragons?"

Ellana giggled when the spirit's heels touched the ground.

Cole was dizzily shaking his head as he twirled in a groggy circle.

"Yes", confirmed Ellana. "There's a High Dragon in the Hinterlands causing trouble for the locals. We could start there first. Clean house as it were. I'd rather not have the Inquisition scouts eaten by a giant fire-breathing lizard".

Bull forgave her folly in a heartbeat.

"You know, Boss", he told her. "You're too good to me".

Ellana winked at him. "I try".

Varric rolled his eyes. "She's bribing you, Tiny".

"I know", said Bull.

"And you're okay with that?"

Bull rolled his shoulders. "I am when it comes to hunting dragons. Have you seen how big they are? It'll be a battle to remember! And it'll be so much fun, Varric!"

Ellana smirked.

Cole groaned and fell on his bottom. He sprawled in the grass, eyes rolling, as he tried to find his bearings.

"The sky won't stop spinning".

Varric slapped a hand to his forehead.

"Maker, Hawke. Where are you when I need you".

* * *

Not so far away inside a dusty room in a tavern. Hawke sat on a bed beside her disgruntled lover. She was waiting for Fenris to finish reading a copy of the letter she'd filched from Haven. Leliana had refused to give it to her when she'd asked. So she'd stolen it instead.

Fenris's hands dropped into his lap. The letter lay across his thighs, the parchment yellowing, the writing still neat in its pristine black ink. His eyes were wide, his brows arching into his hairline. Fenris turned to Hawke with a question on his lips. The incredulity in his voice was plain to hear.

"I have a sister?"

Hawke nodded. "You do".

Fenris stared at her. "You met her?"

Another nod. "I did".

Fenris gestured to the letter in his lap. "And this is a copy of the letter sent to the Inquisition by the Keeper of her Clan?"

Hawke bit her lip. "It is".

Bushy white brows furrowed.

Ellana had looked just him when she'd been mad.

"And you stole it?"

"I had too", reasoned Hawke. "I did ask Leliana to give it to me, but she refused. Some bullshit about confidentiality. But she's the one who copied the original letter in the first place. So I'm not the guilty party here".

Fenris scowled. Hawke could tell he wasn't happy. It wasn't everyday that you found out you weren't an only child. He knew about Varania, but not about his twin sister. Hawke grimaced when Fenris screwed up the letter in his lap and tossed it into the fire burning in the hearth.

They watched the parchment blacken and burn to ash.

All evidence of Ellana's bloodties to him was gone in seconds.

"Was that wise?" asked Hawke.

Fenris nodded. "No one can know she's related to me. At least not yet. Even if it is true. I won't risk some Tevinter slaver learning about her the easy way".

"Oh it's true. She's your sister, Fenris".

He glared at her.

"You're sure".

Hawke smiled. "I saw her face to face. She's your splitting image. But she's a woman and has hips, breasts, and white Dalish vallaslin instead of lyrium markings like you. And she's a mage".

Fenris swore. "Venhedis".

"She despises blood-magic. She's not dangerous".

"All mages are dangerous".

Hawke nudged him in the side. "I'm not dangerous".

Fenris's face softened. "You're my kind of dangerous".

"Oh, flattery will get you everywhere".

"Will it?"

Hawke wrapped her arms around his shoulders. She leaned inwards and planted a kiss in his lips.

"Everywhere", she repeated. "Including into my knickers if you want".

Fenris laughed.

"Are you trying to seduce me, Hawke?"

Hawke threw a leg across his lap. "Of course I am. I haven't had sex in weeks".


	13. Return to Haven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone thinks Ellana's dead after her dragon hunt - even Cullen. And Varric has a plan.
> 
> Unedited.

Another week passed until Ellana returned to Haven worn, ragged, and triumphant. She expected cries of adulation when she strode into the settlement. The smirk on her face turned into a frown when she saw the crowd gathered before the gates. Templars, villagers, pilgrims, apostates, Mother Giselle, and several familiar faces were arguing. Ellana saw the blacksmith, Harritt, wagging a finger in a certain retired Templar’s face.

Ellana paused on the roadside and gawked at them all. 

“Are they fighting?”

Varric paused beside her and watched Cullen try to bite off Harritt’s finger.

“No. They’re just having a friendly conversation”.

Ellana scowled. “Real funny, Varric”.

He grinned. “I aim to please”.

Ellana blew him a wet raspberry.

Varric clucked his tongue in disapproval.

“Now that’s just plain rude”.

The Iron Bull rolled his eyes. “Great. Real mature”.

Cole giggled. “They’re teasing each other. It’s all right”.

Bull gestured to the crowd bickering outside Haven. The women sounded like squawking hens while the men bellowed like druffalo. Everyone was too busy arguing to notice that the Herald of Andraste had returned. Bull expected Cole to sing like a songbird. The spirit had a knack for telling a person’s secrets without permission.

He was astonished when Cole shook his head.

“Ellana doesn’t like it when I do that”.

“So”, said Bull. “You’re not going to translate that gibberish into something understandable?”

Cole’s eyes lit up. “Do you want to know why they’re fighting?”

Bull shrugged his burly shoulders. “Oh, I know why they’re fighting”.

Cole pouted. “Oh, you’re a spy. Of course you know”.

Bull chuckled. “I’m good at what I do”.

Ellana glanced at her burly friend. “So, what are they arguing about then?”

Bull’s lips peeled back from his sharp teeth. He grinned at her with a knowing twinkle in his eye. 

“You”.

Ellana rolled her eyes. “Wonderful. That was painfully obvious. Thanks for the insight. What have I done this time?”

“Well”, said Bull. “We did go up against a High Dragon and we almost died. So I’m guessing word got back to the Inquisition”. He gestured to the crowd. “And here we are”.

“They think we’re dead”, said Cole. He frowned when Cullen almost head-butted Harritt. “Even though we’re not. Cullen is worried. Harritt is furious. And everyone else doesn’t know what to do with themselves”.

Varric snorted. “I’ve got an idea that’ll get this shit sorted in a heartbeat”.

Ellana gestured to the crowd when Varric put his pinky fingers to his mouth. “After you”.

Bull laughed. “Oh, this is going to be good”.

Varric smiled and pursed his lips. His sharp piercing whistle cut through the tension like a hot knife through butter. The crowd, formed from the population of Haven, stopped arguing. As one a hundred heads turned towards the source of the whistle. Cullen was the first to react, his eyes going wide, and his mouth dropping open in surprise.

“Darling?”

Harritt gaped at him. “Darling?” he cried. “Blasphemy! She’s the Herald of Andraste not some common street-tart! How dare you be disrespectful to her Worship!”

The crowd, goaded by Harritt’s exclamation, turned on Cullen in a heartbeat. Some believers glared at the red-faced former-Templar. Other devotees lifted their noses in the air and sniffed disdainfully. Several mages blushed and gaped at Cullen. A handful of Templars were so shocked they dropped their swords and shields with a clank and a clunk.

“Fenedhis lasa”, swore Ellana. “Must I do everything? Cullen. Stay there before you get lynched. I’m on my way to rescue you”.

Cullen smiled in relief. Ellana rolled her eyes and strolled into the crowd. She ignored their disapproving looks. She made a point to offer her hand to Cullen right in front of Harritt. She eyed the blacksmith, arched her eyebrow, and gave him a piece of her mind.

“I’m a Dalish elf not some cloistered Chantry sister. If I want to snuggle with Cullen. I will. If your Maker and his wife disapproves. They can eat dirt and suck on rotten eggs”.

Harritt gasped. The crowd fell silent. Ellana was relieved when Cullen laid his gauntleted hand in hers. She led him to safety with a wink and a smile. The crowd parted to let them through and they were soon walking into the village.

Cole giggled. “She made them stop arguing. Now they’re feeling ashamed of themselves”. He smiled at a flustered Harritt. “Especially you”. He beamed when the blacksmith scowled. “It’s all right”, he assured the man. “Ellana still likes you even if she thinks you’re an idiot”.

Harritt flushed as red as his moustache. “I was only concerned for her well-being after all”, he told Cole. “You must tell her that, lad. These Templars aren’t known for treating mages right. I’ve heard all about their fornications in those Circles of Magi. And more oft than not a Templar wasn’t able to keep his or her bits inside their armour”.

Cole was as guileless as a child. “My friend’s mother was a mage from a Circle of Magi. She fornicated with a Templar and made a baby. My friend didn’t know either of his parents, but he did meet his mother when he was older. He was happy he knew her in the end, though he didn’t like his father much at all”.

Harritt nodded. “I’m not surprised. The rotter. You go and look after our Herald now. And you make sure that Cullen does right by her”.

Cole smiled. “I will”. He waved Harritt goodbye and continued on his way. 

Bull and Varric accompanied him back into the village of Haven. The crowd took their time to disperse. Bull was given admiring looks by several of the Chantry’s cloistered sisters. And Varric wondered if Ellana might have started something of a revolt amongst the mages. He saw the way several women, all with staves in-hand, were eyeing Cullen’s fellow Templars.

A few winked and giggled whilst others made subtle come-hither gestures.

“Look at that!” he cried. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

Bull laughed. “What? Those girls wanting to screw their Templars and not with spells or a pitchfork?”

Varric pursed his lips and whistled. “Oh, you’re good. Excellent observation”.

“I know. I try”.

Bull puffed out his chest and jiggled his pectorals.

One Chantry sister blushed. Another turned beet-red.

“Oh, Tiny”, crooned Varric. “A Qunari mercenary corrupting the Chantry. I like you’re style. Hawke would too if she wasn’t wrapped around Fenris like a bow”.

Bull frowned. “Didn’t she kill the Arishok?”

“She did, but she had wet dreams about him for months beforehand. Until Fenris swooped in and swept her off her feet. You guys are built like a brick shithouse. That’s a lot of burly bricks. And Hawke likes muscles”.

“Wait. Are you saying she wanted to screw the Arishok?”

Varric snorted. “Repeatedly and not with a red-hot poker. She was half-in-love with him right up until the end. But his devotion to the teachings of Koslun was absolute. And Hawke loves her friends like family”.

Bull nodded. “I get it”.

“Oh”, said Varric with surprise. “It is like with you and the Chargers?”

“Yeah”.

He grinned as they followed Cole up a flight of snowy steps. “Aw. Sex is great, but family is forever. It’s weird to think that you and Hawke have something in common. Fenris is going to love you”.

“Why do you say that?” asked Bull. 

“Oh, nothing”.

“Varric!”

“What?”

Bull scowled. “You’ve got something planned for Ellana”.

He smirked. “You’ll see soon enough, Tiny”.


	14. Plans going to shit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellana readies her forces to close the Breach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unedited.

“Wait”, said Varric. “You’re not serious. Right?”

Ellana tightened buckle after buckle. She had forgone her Dalish robes for an overcoat fashioned from dragonscale. The hide, meat, and bones from her latest foe had been put to good use by the Inquisition. Their militia hadn’t eaten so well in weeks and Ellana had several new additions to her wardrobe. Varric hadn’t expected her to put those extra additions to use so soon.

The Dragon was less than a month dead, and she was getting ready to go off on another death-defying mission.

“We can’t continue to sit here in Haven, Varric”, explained Ellana. “We have the close to Breach. And today is the day. We have the Templars in-hand. Cullen is ready to lead them and Cassandra thinks our luck is as good as it’s going to get”.

She twirled her new dragonbone staff, fingertips crackling with a lightning spell. The hair on Varric’s chest stood on-end. He patted them down with a grimace. Ellana had a tendency to create static-shock when she used lightning spells. He didn’t want to get electrocuted again.

“I know”, grumbled Varric. “But does it have to be today?”

Ellana lowered her staff, eyes narrowing in suspicion. “I know that tone. What have you done?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Nothing”.

“Bullshit. You can lie to Cassandra, but not to me. I’m onto you. What did you do? Please don’t tell me it has something to do with Hawke”.

Varric’s all too innocent smile made her curse.

“Fenedhis! I told you I didn’t want to see her again!”

Varric did what he did best – shaming people into doing what he wanted. 

“I know”, he wheedled. “I heard you loud and clear last time, but in my defence. You’re forgetting something important. My friends are like family to me. And I count Hawke, her husband, and you among my very best friends”.

Ellana glared at him. “You’re treading on thin ice. Keep walking and it’s sure to crack and send you tumbling into a dark freezing abyss”.

Varric pouted. “Oh, don’t be like that”.

“I’ll leave you to drown. I swear it”.

“You wouldn’t”.

“Try me”.

Varric sighed. “You really don’t want to meet Hawke again?”

Ellana lifted her nose in the air with a disdainful sniff. “I don’t. She’s your friend not mine. And don’t start on about Fenris. Maker’s breath. He’s better off not attaching himself to me right now. Every rebel mage and red templar – from here to Tevinter – wants my head on a silver platter”.

Varric grimaced. “Right. I forgot about that”.

Ellana blanched. “You what?”

“I forgot”.

She shook her head. “Tell me you didn’t invite Hawke back to Haven”.

Varric’s smile was pained. “I didn’t just invite Hawke”. He tried to laugh off the anxiety when Ellana scowled. “I invited Fenris too – by raven. Leliana was accommodating so I took it upon myself to do what you wouldn’t”.

He backed away – slowly – when Ellana raised her left hand high. Rays of emerald light spilled from her fingers like water. She was muttering a spell – the words tinged with malice – that set Varric’s teeth on edge. He was thinking about running away when Cassandra interrupted Ellana’s rage-filled retribution. The Seeker’s timing was uncanny as she shoved Varric out of her way.

He stumbled, swearing.

“Cassandra!” cried Ellana. “I was about to tear him apart with the Anchor!”

The Seeker snorted. “We don’t have time for magical disembowelments”.

“But he’s done the unforgivable!”

Cassandra shook her head. “Varric always does the unforgivable. He’s a liar, a thief, a pedlar of pornographic novels, and a teller of tales so false his very existence offends the Maker”.

Ellana fumed. “I know all that already! You’re not listening to me!” She jabbed a sparkling emerald-tinted finger at Varric. “He invited Hawke to Haven without my permission! Again!”

“I know”.

“What?” gasped Ellana. 

Cassandra shrugged her shoulders. “I know what he’s done. I read all Leliana’s correspondences with people outside the Inquisition. I know he invited Hawke to Haven. And I know he encouraged her to bring Fenris along too”.

“That was supposed to be private!” sputtered Varric.

Ellana glowered at him. “Shut up you dreadful excuse for a dwarf! You’re not my friend!”

“You take that back! Right now!” 

Cassandra rolled her eyes. “Maker’s breath. Shut up the both of you!” She glowered at each of them in turn. “We don’t have time for this foolishness! The Templars are ready to march on the Temple of Sacred Ashes!”

Ellana curled the fingers of her left hand into a fist. She dispelled the enchantment she’d been weaving in favour of their mission. She shot Varric a dirty look as she handed her staff to Cassandra. The Seeker helped by buckling it into the harness across her back. Ellana rolled her shoulders when she was done, testing the balance.

“Good?” asked Cassandra.

Ellana nodded. “Ma serannas”. 

“Excellent. Well, if you’re ready. We should go”.

Varric frowned. “Now wait a moment!”

Ellana’s nose wrinkled in disdain. “No”.

“No?”

She nodded. “No, Varric. Our mission takes priority. We are leaving for the Temple of Sacred Ashes. I don’t have time to worry about Hawke or her husband. This is more important”.

Varric sighed when Ellana glowered a him. He knew that look. She was ready to set his chest-hair aflame if he argued with her. He ran a weary hand down his face with a resigned nod. He knew she was right, even if he wanted what was best for Fenris.

“Fine. Let’s go close the Breach”.

Ellana exhaled a weary breath. “And no more scheming behind my back”.

Cassandra snickered. “Fat chance of that”.

“Promise me, Varric”.

He eyed the laughing Seeker, lip curling. She was right of course. He was a pathological liar. It just came naturally. Varric grimaced when Ellana repeated her demand.

“Promise me!”

“I promise to stop scheming behind your back”, he replied, teeth gritting. It actually hurt to make the pledge. Varric was known for his loyalty to friends, not his honesty about their exploits. A fact Hawke knew all too well. But some things were sacred.

And being trustworthy – especially with your friends’ secrets was worth more than gold.

Ellana frowned. “Promises are sacred to the Dalish. If you break one, I’ll lose all respect for you. And you probably won’t be my friend any more. Remember that, Varric”.

He sighed. “Fine. I’ll remember it”.

“Good”.

Cassandra snorted. “Are you done? We do have to close the Breach. Today would be preferable. Although I’m sure the Templars won’t mind waiting until tomorrow”.

Ellana groaned. “Was that sarcasm?”

“Yes”.

“Maker’s balls. You’re bad at it”.

Cassandra’s patience was gone. She scowled, grabbing Ellana by the arm. “That’s enough! Come on! We have to close the Breach!”

“Hey! Let go! I’m not a child! Fenedhis! Cassandra!”

Varric waved her goodbye as she was dragged away.

“Don’t just stand there!” pleaded Ellana. “Save me! Varric!”

He grinned. “I’ll meet you at the temple. Bye”.

“Bastard!”

He blew her a kiss. “Love you too, Broody”. He groaned when she was out of sight, grin disappearing. His heart was heavy when he thought of Fenris. “Maker, please. Don’t let this go to shit”.

And several hours after the successful closing of the Breach.

Things did indeed go to shit.


	15. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chaos descends on Haven. And two siblings are finally reunited.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated with edited scenes, and new dialogue

Things had indeed gone to shit. Ellana was the first down the snowy-steps leading to the gates of Haven. She was also the first to hear the epithets spat in Tevene. Only her father ever sounded that angry when something annoyed him. Ellana thought he'd made the journey to Haven – until the gates opened.

A man was standing in the snow, cursing at a mage with stave in-hand. He wore a small fortune in black leather and steel-plate. Ellana wondered how he managed to fit inside a set of armour that snug. Either he was skinny or loved the leather and steel equivalent of a corset. She said the first thing that came to mind.

“Maker’s balls. That cuirass looks tighter than a fish’s arsehole. How can you breathe?”

The man tensed like a drawn bowstring. The cowl upon his head fluttered in the wind, until a pair of gloved hands gripped the dark fabric. The cowl was pulled down, revealing snow-white hair. It was long, braided, and tied at the nape of his neck with a leather thong. Ellana gaped when his head did a slow turn.

“I could say the same of you in those robes”, he retorted. “You look like you’re wearing a leather girdle”.

“It’s a fetish”, quipped Ellana. “I like dangerous things. And nothing is more dangerous than a fire-breathing lizard. Why not wear its skin as a coat after it tried to eat me? It makes me fire-proof”.

“That’s wishful thinking”.

“I know, but a girl can dream. Right?”

He laughed, cheeks dimpling. An eternity passed in a handful of seconds. Ellana stared into a pair of leaf-green eyes. She knew who he was. He shared her brown skin, though his features were masculine. Ellana saw her father’s square jaw, pointed chin, and sharp angular cheeks.

“I always wondered what I’d look like as boy. Now I know”.

“Is that disappointment or an insult?”

“It’s hard to say”, stated Ellana. “After Hawke’s unabashed gawking at me. I’m owed a turn”.

His laughter ebbed away to moody silence. The tension was palpable, when she walked down those last few steps. Ellana had a healthy sense of caution when it came to wolves. The stranger with her face had the haggard look of a vagrant, though his armour was clean if well-worn. His hair was well-kept too and his cheeks were full instead of gaunt.

He wasn’t a starving rabid beast, so why did he have the look of a caged animal?

Ellana reached the bottom of the steps, snow crunching underfoot . She shivered in the wintry air, though not from the cold. Dread settled in her stomach like a stone. Her mouth turned-down unhappily when she thought of her father and all he’d done. Her upbringing, like her twin’s, were worlds apart.

He had grown up as a slave in Tevinter, shackled and collared like a mabari. And she had lived among the Dalish, a nomad with neither home nor land to call her own. The brother born as her reflection, had been somewhere else her entire life. Ellana sniffled, the tears welling. She called his name before she lost the courage too.

“F-Fenris?”

A tear slipped down her cheek at his stiff nod. “Varric was right”, she conceded. “We do look alike”. She inhaled a shaky breath. “Ir abelas”, she apologised. “It’s not every day you meet your long-lost twin”.

“No”, agreed Fenris. “It’s not”. His brows furrowed as he studied her face. He saw that she was crying, the tears freezing upon her cheeks. “Are you all right?”

Ellana shook her head. “No. I doubt I ever will be”. Her smile was strained. “Knowing you’re alive and meeting you face-to-face. Maker’s breath. It makes my life a thousand times more complicated”.

Fenris baulked, cheeks reddening. “I didn’t want to make this harder for you. Hawke warned me that you didn’t want to acknowledge my existence”. A glance at his wife made Ellana grit her teeth. She wasn’t happy when Hawke stepped out of his shadow. Fenris saw the lack of warmth, the veiled hostility.

Hawke's nervous wave was met with a derisive snort. It spoke volumes about their relationship.

“You don’t like each other”.

Hawke beamed. “Oh, I like Ellana. But I’m afraid the sentiment is one-sided. I bet she finds me annoying like you did when we first met”. Hawke waggled her brows.

“I’m the fly in her ointment”.

“The what?” asked Fenris.

“Balls”, cursed Hawke. “There goes my dramatic one-liner. Thanks, love. Varric will be so disappointed”.

“What are you talking about?”

“Remember Flemeth’s speech on Sundermount?”

“No”.

“Maker, Fenris! Your memory is shit!” scolded Hawke. She rolled her eyes when he shrugged his shoulders. “Flemeth said – I am a fly in the ointment, I am a whisper in the shadows!” Another shrug made her groan.

“Ugh. You’re hopeless”.

Hawke gestured to Ellana. “Ignore him. Drama was never his strong suit. Right, so let’s resume that all important conversation before-”. She nodded to her confused spouse. “-Mister Moody forgot the significance of my dramatic one-liner”.

Hawke nodded twice as she recounted their earlier conversation. She pointed at Ellana. “You said your life would be a thousand times more complicated”. A jerk of her thumb at Fenris. “And he told you that I told him that you didn’t want to acknowledge his existence”.

Hawke clapped her hands together and smiled. “Right. So, lets continue with the soul-shaking revelations”. She pointed to each of them in turn as if she were the stage director of an Orlesian opera. “Ellana, I believe it’s your turn to call Fenris’ bluff”.

The reunited twins exchanged a bewildered glance.

“Is she mad?” asked Ellana, as she regained her composure. The tears frozen to her cheeks were itching. She scratched them away with determined swipes of the thumb.

“A little”, admitted Fenris. “Indulge her. Hawke is a bit touched-in-the-head after reading Varric’s novels. It happens. That dwarf’s mad too”.

His sister smiled half-heartedly. “All right. I can do that. Er-To acknowledge your existence”, replied Ellana. “Was to admit that my Papae was a liar”.

Fenris’ eyes narrowed. She had his attention. “I know that word. It’s Dalish, or elvish. I’ve been around Merrill long enough to recognise the language. You’re talking about father”.

“My – Oh. Yes”.

“He’s our father, sister”, he corrected. “Not just yours. We share more than a face. We share blood even if you refused to entertain the possibility. I am as real as you are”.

Ellana was startled by his certainty. Try as she might to deny it, part of her knew Fenris was right. There had always been a void in her life, a sense that something was missing. Ellana had never thought it was a sibling, a brother she’d never met. Now, when faced with the truth – her pride was a bitter pill to swallow.

“Ir abelas. I didn’t mean it like that”.

“Oh, yes you did!” barked Fenris. “Why was it so hard for you to accept that I was alive? Were you ashamed of me? Did being related to a slave make you feel dirty? Was I too much of a disgrace for your precious Dalish sensibilities?”

The tears came thick and fast in a deluge of despair.

“ _Stop putting words in my mouth_!” screamed Ellana. Her chest heaved as she sucked in lungfuls of air. It stung to think that Fenris thought her heartless. “I didn’t know you were alive! _I swear it_!” she wailed. “Papae told me you died when I was born!”

“How convenient”.

She stared at him, eyes glistening, and cheeks wet. “I didn’t know! _You have to believe me_! It wasn’t until Varric told me your birth-name that I knew the truth! You’re, my twin-brother! _My_ , _Leto_!”

“My name is Fenris”.

Ellana’s resolve crumbled. She fell to her knees, face buried in her hands. She wept as if her heart were breaking. Cullen rushed down the steps. He would have swept her into his arms if Fenris hadn’t reacted first.

“Leave her alone! Haven’t you hurt her enough?”

Hawke grabbed her beau’s arm. “ _Fenris_! _Don_ ’ _t_!”

He shook her off. “Be quiet, Hawke!” He glared at Cullen. “Stay out of this, Templar!” Fenris regarded Ellana with pity. He heard her miserable cries, and something struck a chord in him. He wasn’t sure what he was doing, but somehow it felt right.

“Get up!” he commanded. He grew frustrated when Ellana continued to cry. “ _I said_ – _Get up_!” He grabbed her wrist, armoured fingers locking tight. He yanked her to her feet and tore her hands from her face.

Fenris stared into red-rimmed green eyes, so like his own. “Stop crying! We are under attack! Do you want your friends to die?”

The frantic shake of Ellana’s head told him she was listening. “Good. They don’t want you to die either”. Fenris took her by the shoulders, turning her round. He gestured to her friends and the people of Haven waiting for her to decide what to do.

“Are you not the Herald of Andraste?”

“I never claimed to be”, sobbed Ellana. “They just think I am”. She hiccuped when Cullen nodded.

“Darling”, he coaxed. “We need you to be our Herald. Time is running out. And Haven is under attack. It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe the Maker put you on this path. We believe he did”.

Fenris’ voice was soft in her ear. “Lead them. Be who you are meant to be”.

Ellana’s first nod was uncertain, but her second was more confident. She stepped forward when Fenris released her, head high. She didn’t see her twin smile, or Hawke take his hand. Her immediate focus was the safety of the people of Haven. She turned to the mage kneeling in the snow.

His state of dress was inappropriate in the depths of winter.

Ellana saw leather, velvet, and lots of polished silverite. His lack of a cloak and anything fur-lined was mad. Haven was frigid this time of year. The man’s immaculate coif and moustache would hardly keep his face warm. Even if the patch of hair on his chin made him look distinguished, Ellana was sure his balls were freezing.

“Who are you?”

“I’m here to warn you. Fashionably late I’m afraid”, he wheezed. “Sorry. I’m a might exhausted. Been running for hours you know. My name is Dorian Pavus, and I bring grave news from Redcliff”.

His explanation was simple – they had an army on their doorstep.

The white lines of Dirthamen’s vallaslin upon her face, flared silver-bright. Ellana was breathing hard when Varric rushed to join her. He was at her side, arm sweeping outward to ward off the crowd. He barked orders as Bull and Cole converged on them. Bull went left, Cole right, as they took their places beside Ellana.

They were ready for a fight.

“Everyone back!” roared Varric. “Don’t look at me like that, Fenris! Do as I say!” He was glad when he saw who Fenris had brought with him. “Maker, Hawke! You’ve got the shittiest timing!”

The Champion of Kirkwall ushered her husband away from Ellana. “Well, it’s nice to see you again too. Arse. We would’ve been here a week ago, but someone wanted to stop at an inn along the way”. She pointed a gauntleted finger at Fenris.

“It’s his fault we’re late”.

Her husband scowled. “If I remember correctly. You wanted to stop at that inn, Hawke”.

“Don’t believe a word he says. He’s lying”.

“Sure he is, Hawke”, teased Varric. “We both know you love sleeping on the roadside like a pauper”.

“Shut up”.

Fenris snorted. “Too used to feather-beds that one”.

“That’s our Hawke”, confirmed Varric. “She appreciates the simple things in life”. He frowned when he saw Dorian. He didn’t like the way the mage eyed Ellana. Varric had a thing about strangers hurting his friends.

“So”, he called as he reached for Bianca. “You a stray or an ally?” He pulled the crossbow over his shoulder and into his hands. He winked and took aim. The mage’s haughty sniff amused him.

“Both actually. Now if you don't mind. I’d rather not have a quarrel in my brain”.

“That’s for me to decide. You got a name?”

“Dorian Pavus. I’ve already introduced myself to your lovely Dalish friend”.

“Careful”, growled Fenris. “That’s my sister. He’s a magister, Varric. Hawke and I encountered him on the road to Haven. I say shoot him”.

Dorian rolled his eyes. “Maker’s balls, for the last time! Not every Tevinter mage is a magister! And we don’t have time to argue!” He gestured to Ellana. “Your friend is about to explode!”

“She is”, agreed Varric. “Bull! See those torches?”

“Yeah?”

“Point Ellana that way. Whomever is crossing that mountain is about to get a shitstorm of retribution”.

Bull grinned, taking charge. “You got it”. He winked at Dorian as he passed him by. “You’re cute for a Vint”. The praise flustered Dorian. His cheeks were pink when Bull addressed Ellana.

The lines of her vallaslin glowed silver-white. Her eyes were two green holes in her head, blazing with an eerie inner fire. She turned at the sound of Bull’s voice, left hand rising – the Anchor spitting verdant sparks. Bull beckoned with two gigantic clawed hands. He nodded when she took several steps toward him.

“That’s it, Boss. We’ve got baddies on the horizon. A whole army of assholes wanting to burn down Haven. They’ll kill everyone you care about. Me, Cole, Varric, hell even poor sweet Cullen”.

Ellana trembled with fury. Her lips peeled back from her teeth as a hand reached over her shoulder. She undid the buckle of her harness with a snap of her fingers. She gripped the haft of her stave, pulling it free. She twirled it like a rogue palming a dagger, the butt slamming into the ground.

Cole was armed and ready. He unsheathed his daggers with a smile. He squinted at the mountainside above them, blanketed with snow. Lines of torches were visible against the darkness of the trees. And on a snowy hillside stood two figures, one short, the other tall.

“Young and eager to please. Full of hope and desire. She wants to change Tevinter for the better, to make life easier for its slaves”, explained Cole. “Twisted, bent, and broken. All red inside like frozen fire, burning but never burned. He’s corrupted and corrupting, a ghost of a man in the skin of a monster”.

“Well that’s insightful”, said Dorian. “The woman’s name is Calpernia. She’s leading the rebel mages of Redcliff. She commands the Venatori, an army in service to something called the Elder One. They were already marching on Haven. I risked my life to get here first”.

“Ma serannas”, replied Ellana. “Your warning is appreciated”.

“What did she say?”

“She said – Thank you in elvish”, translated Cole. “It’s a very old language, but Ellana only knows a little like all Dalish”.

“Oh. Er-You’re welcome”.

Cole smiled when Bull goaded Ellana to take action.

“So, Boss. What are we going to do?”

Ellana raised her left-hand skyward. Wisps of emerald light trickled through her fingers like water.

“We do what we do best. We kill them all”.

Dorian was less optimistic. “I think that might be easier said than done”.


	16. Rescuing Ellana

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fenris is determined to keep his twin safe, despite her better judgement.

“I told you it was easier said than done!” cried Dorian. “Look out!”

He jabbed a finger at the sky above. A huge black dragon winged its way towards them. It swooped like a falcon on-wing. It spewed a torrent of red flame upon the one weapon they had. The trebuchet exploded, the beam snapping, the wooden frame wobbling.

“Sister!”

Ellana gasped when an arm hooked around her waist. She was thrown clear of the mountain of wood and steel, rolling in the snow. She hit the ground hard, grunting when the trebuchet toppled over. She groaned when the world came back into focus. She was soon looking into a scowling brown face.

“What do you think you were doing?” snapped Fenris. “You could’ve been crushed!”

Ellana shoved at his chest. “The trebuchet wasn’t going to fire itself! Now get off me!”

“You almost died!”

“That wasn’t the first time. It won’t be the last”.

Fenris gaped at her. 

“What do you mean by that?”

Ellana smacked the arms locked around her waist. “Maker’s balls! We don’t have time to argue! Help me up before that dragon comes back! If we’re going to survive this, we need to get back to the gates!”

“Tell me what you meant!”

Ellana reached up to cup Fenris’ face between the palm of her hands. She smiled when a tear slid down his cheek. She saw the fear in his eyes. He was angry, hopeful, and full of despair in the same moment. His heart was full of conflicting emotions.

“You have to let me go”.

The slow shake of his head made Ellana’s smile fade.

“Please, Fenris”.

“You could die”, he told her. “And where would that leave me? I’ll be alone again!”

She nodded to the woman beyond them. Hawke was helping Varric to his feet. Like her husband – she’d chosen to cover their advance. Scores of dead Venatori lay about them, some cleaved in half, others burned, or frozen. Hawke’s spell-work and Fenris’ sword-arm had allowed Ellana and her friends to reach their goal.

The dragon had changed everything. The trebuchet was destroyed. The avalanche had buried most of the Elder One’s mage army. They were dead and dying, but the Venatori that had infiltrated Haven were still a threat. Ellana knew the odds were against them.

“You’ll still have Hawke”, she told Fenris.

Another shake of his head made her frown.

“No”.

“You have to let me go”, argued Ellana. “I have to help the people of Haven”.

“No!” growled Fenris. “Mother is dead! Varania is in Tevinter! Father is alive and so are you! Don’t you understand? You’re the only family I have left!”

“You’re being selfish”.

“I have every right to be! If not for Hawke! I would never have known you existed! You’re my twin sister! I won’t let you die for them! And that’s final!”

“You don’t get to make that decision!” protested Ellana. “It’s my life!”

“Not anymore you, fatalistic fool!” snapped Fenris. He jabbed a gauntleted finger at her. “You’re my sister!” He slapped his hand to his chest. “Mine! I’m going to keep you alive whether you like it or not! Get used to having a shadow!”

Ellana groaned in annoyance. She’d never thought gaining a sibling would be so annoying. Fenris was much like her father, loud, stubborn, and overbearing. The thought amused her, as he helped her to her feet. His brows furrowed when he heard her giggle.

“What’re you laughing about?”

“Nothing”.

Fenris glared when a second pair of hands offered to help. “Back off, mage!”

Dorian rolled his eyes. “Maker’s breath. Your sister is a mage too. Or have you not seen the stave strapped to her back?” He pointed to the top of the staff sticking out high over her head. “If I’m not mistaken – that’s definitely not a sword, an axe, or a shield”.

“Oh. You’re observant. Wonderful. Now, get away from my sister!”

“Rather possessive aren’t we?”

“Get away!”

Ellana saw the white lines on Fenris’ chin as he argued with Dorian. She saw more upon his throat, pale against the darkness of his skin. She thought of her staff capped by the statuette of a roaring High Dragon. The statue’s open wings were etched with dwarven runes infused with lyrium. The craftsmanship was exquisite, the enchantment expensive. 

Ellana had once appreciated the boost to her fire-spells.

Now all she felt was guilt.

“Maker’s balls!” she cursed. “Hawke! Get over here and make yourself useful!” She jabbed a finger at Fenris. “Contain him!” She eyed Dorian as if he were a venomous snake. “Stop antagonising my brother!”

Dorian’s moustache twitched. He smiled, cheeks dimpling. “But he’s such fun. I can’t help, but want to bat him about like a cat with a ball of yarn. You wouldn’t want me to be bored would you?”

Ellana’s eyes narrowed. “Leave him alone, or suffer the consequences”.

“Are you threatening me?”

She smiled with saccharine sweetness. “I have more than magic at my disposal”.

“Is that so?” asked Dorian.

Ellana arched an eyebrow when a shadow engulfed them. She looked over Dorian’s shoulder to the bare-chested Qunari glowering at them. Bull glanced from her to the Vint in their midst. His expression was grim. He was ready to reach for his weapon again – a giant double-headed battleaxe.

“Is it so”, grumbled Bull. “I’m her bodyguard. Try something – I’ll cut your hands off. You won’t be twirling a staff without fingers. Try a spell – you’ll lose your tongue too”.

“I’ll kill you”, said Cole, as he appeared out of thin-air. “Bull’s kinder. I’m not”.

“Maker!” gasped Dorian. He was suddenly more concerned about this pale-faced boy than Bull. “You look human – but something is off! I can’t quite decide what, but you’re rather strange! What are you?”

“I’m Ellana’s friend”.

“Well that’s vague and unhelpful”.

“It’s true”.

“If you say so”.

Dorian capitulated when Varric added his two-cents. “Be a good boy, Sparkler. And I won’t need to put a quarrel through your brain. We’re all friends here, until someone does something stupid. And by someone, I mean you”.

Dorian raised his hands to pacify them. “What a charming bunch of people. I feel so warm and giddy on the inside after meeting you all”. He pretended to wipe a tear from his eye. “Three death threats before dinner. It’s like, I’m home again”.

Fenris grimaced. “Tevinter is a nest of vipers!”

Dorian smiled. “I know. I miss it every single day”.

“He’s being sarcastic”, said Hawke.

“On the contrary, I was quite serious”.

Ellana groaned, turning on her heel. She got two steps before Fenris barked.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

The Elder One’s dragon roared in the distance. Everyone soon got their arses moving. The rush to the gates of Haven was along a road of corpses. Ellana saw faces strange and familiar – all pale, dead, and staring. Their armour rent open, blood crusting as it froze solid.

“Herald!”

Ellana paused long enough to see Harritt, the blacksmith – trying to kick a door down. And all for a hammer handed down in his family – a keepsake. The man was insane. She sent Bull to help, the qunari lifting a great black boot into the air. The wood splintered, the door cracking in half, and Harritt rushed inside to find his heirloom.

“We have to keep moving!” urged Hawke. “The Venatori will soon be upon us!”

Ellana nodded. “Right! Go on ahead! I’ll bring up the rear!” She gestured to Cullen at the open gates, calling people inside. Ellana took a fortifying breath, preparing herself to make a stand. She gasped when a hard shoulder barrelled into her stomach.

The world turned upside down. 

Fenris grunted as she was thrown across his back. “Maker’s balls! You’re heavy! What have you been eating?”

“Put me down!” screeched Ellana. She pulled on the braided tail of his hair. “Right now! Fenris! Put me down!”

“Not a chance! I’m your shadow – Remember? Ow! Stop that! I’m saving your life!”

The ground shifted as her troublesome twin broke into a run. Ellana was jostled up and down like a sack of turnips. She drummed her fists on his spine. She kicked, she screamed, and he ignored her tantrums. Ellana saw an ashen-faced Cullen upside down, when Fenris ran through the gates of Haven.

“Darling?”

“Tell him to put me down!” 

She yelped when she was dumped on her arse in the snow. Ellana squawked like a hen, arms flailing, as she spat out a mouthful of frost. She rolled over, knees wobbly. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes narrow, and angry. She slapped aside Hawke’s gauntleted hand.

“Get away from me!”

“I was only trying to help”.

“I don’t need your help!” yelled Ellana. She dusted herself off, when Hawke backed away – hands raised to pacify her. She glared at her twin. Fenris returned her scrutiny, arms folded across his chest. “You had no right to do that!”

He snorted. “You’re, my twin sister! I had every right!”

“Ass!”

“Brat!”

Ellana reached over her shoulder – to the staff harnessed to her back. She pulled it loose, fingers crackling with lightning. A spell was on her lips. She cast before Fenris could react and draw his sword. The spell went wide, striking a Venatori assassin square in the chest.

He materialised in a rush of smoke, falling to the ground – dead.

“He almost killed me!” gasped Fenris. 

Hawke whistled her appreciation. “Emphasis on almost. That was a good shot. Damn, she’s quick. Not even Merill can cast that fast and she’s Dalish too”.

Cullen slammed the gates closed after Harritt rushed through. He urged the blacksmith to take shelter in the Chantry. Afterwards he exhaled a shaky breath, turning on his heel. He ignored Fenris, going immediately to Ellana. He made a fuss over her, touching her face, hair, and shoulders.

“Are you all right?”

She nodded. “I’m fine”.

“You worry me”.

She blushed. “I know”.

Cullen smiled, kissing her brow. “It’s not over yet. I want you to be careful”. He nodded when Bull inclined his horned head to the Chantry. Cole frowned as he interrupted their time together.

“I’m sorry”, he apologized. “But people need our help”.

Ellana stepped away from Cullen with great reluctance. “I have to go”.

“I know”.

Bull grinned when Fenris scowled. “Don’t take it to heart. The Boss is sweet on Cullen, and she’s known him for months, almost a year. You’re shit out of luck, despite the whole twin thing. She needs time to get to know you, before she’ll start taking your advice on board. She’s a little stubborn with strangers”.

Fenris’ eyes narrowed. He gave Bull a suspicious look. “You’re observant”.

“I know”.

“Too observant. No one is that aware of their surroundings”.

Bull grinned from ear to ear. “You sure about that?”

“Very”.

Fenris gazed long and hard at Bull. And just like that – he knew what Bull was. “Venhedis!” he swore. “You’re, Qunari!”

“The horns give me away or was it the lack of a shirt?”

Hawke reddened. Fenris glared. And Bull jiggled his pectorals. 

“Stop that!”

Bull grinned from ear to ear, exposing his pointed Qunari fangs. “So, it is true”. He winked at Hawke. “Your girlfriend likes muscles. I heard she had a thing for the last Arishok too”.

Hawke went quiet and looked everywhere but at Bull’s bare muscular chest.

Fenris glowered at him. “You’re talking about my wife! And her likes are none of your business!”

“Sure”, agreed Bull. “You can thank Varric for telling me all about her. He’s got a mouth bigger than a druffalo’s arse. He talks a lot, about everything too. You might want to tell him to keep his trap shut about sensitive issues. Just a thought”.

Fenris’ faced purpled when he spotted Varric trying to hide behind Ellana. 

“You!”

Varric smiled a little too innocently. “Broody!” he cried, appealing to Ellana. “Fenris has that look in his eye! He wants to kill me!” Varric arched his eyebrows and gave her an imploring look.

“Save me! Pretty please?”

She groaned in disgust, eyes rolling. “Maker’s balls”. She glared at Fenris. “If you harm a single hair on Varric’s head. I will never speak to you again”. She saw the mischievous twinkle in Bull’s lone grey eye.

She knew in an instant that he was up to no good.

“Bull, stop teasing him. And leave Hawke alone. Her face might catch fire if you start flexing again. I doubt Fenris would appreciate his wife spontaneously combusting. Leave the setting of fires to the dragon trying to burn down Haven”.

Bull chuckled. “Yes, Boss”.

“Why are you listening to her?” blurted Fenris. He couldn’t quite get his brain around a weedy Dalish elf giving orders to a Qunari giant.

“Because”, said Bull. He gestured to Ellana. “She’s the Boss”.

Ellana frowned at her twin. “Fenedhis! What is it now?”

“Nothing”.

“Then stop looking at me like that!”

Varric nudged her in the side. “He’s judging you”.

Dorian nodded. “He most definitely is. I’d know that snide judgemental look anywhere. It’s a popular Vintish pastime to screw your nose up at random strangers. Perhaps your brother thinks that the handsome Qunari chap is your slave”.

Bull smirked. “Aw, Boss. He called me handsome. I think he’s sweet on me”.

Ellana giggled. “You know you’re gorgeous, Bull”. Her good mood faded when she glowered at Fenris. “And he’s not my slave. He’s my friend. He only follows my direction, because he trusts me”.

Bull nodded. “That’s right”. He gestured to Cullen, who was nervously watching the sky. “We should get a move on, Boss. The dragon’s circling. And your boyfriend’s trying not to shit himself with fear”.

Ellana relented with a huff of annoyance. “Fine. Come on, Varric. Bull”. She spotted Dorian and beckoned him over. “And you. Stay where I can keep an eye on you. Hawke and the twit wearing my face, can bring up the rear”.

Fenris took umbrage. “I am not a twit!”

“Says you”.

“Brat!”

“Arse!”

It was only then that Ellana noticed a member of their group was missing. She looked around, searching for a patchy leather hat. When she found neither pale blonde hair nor a pallid face, she swore.

“Fenedhis! Where’s Cole?”


End file.
